Things FF Writers Do That They Shouldn't
by Twihardfan1234
Summary: This is a list of things I think ff writers do that would be better left undone. Please give me your feedback, your opinion, your support and even your objections. I want to hear it.
1. Chapter 1

This is something I wrote to get out all of my frustration of the stupid things that I think too many ff writers do. THESE ARE JUST _MY _OPINIONS!!!! I am making that known so that I don't get a million messages saying "well what do you know?, you're stupid, just because you think this, doesn't mean it's true…etc." IN MY OPINION, I think that these things detract from people's stories and make them less professional, dignified, likable, readable, etc. I wouldn't be surprised if that some people who read this find out they do some of these things and try to stick up for the validity of their choices as creative license, and say that they did it because they think it was right and it added artistic merit; however, I also wouldn't be surprised if a lot of people agreed with me. You don't have to agree with me, you don't even have to read it, but I think that if people just took into consideration some of the things I'm saying here, as well as the reasons behind why I'm saying it, it would make some stories more enjoyable to read. But again, THAT IS JUST MY OPINION!

Things people do, that they shouldn't!!!

1. Characters are multi-dimensional…good characters anyway. Stephanie Meyer created very nice, in depth, three dimensional characters that did not deserve to be destroyed and flattened by over zealous fans. Because one character has a certain interest or personality quirk, does NOT mean that that is all they are, think about or do. For Example:

-Alice is capable of being reserved and serious. Just because she is a little eccentric, does not mean she is a mental head case with ADD, who is hyper _all the time_. She is also able to have other interests aside from shopping and fashion. They are a hobby and a passion, not a life-support machine that needs to be on and carried around 24/7. Also, just because her hair is called a pixie like cut (which is an actual style of haircut), **once **in SM's book, does not make it normal for characters in regular conversation to describe her as or call her such. Would you describe your short, petite friend as a pixie all the time (Before the books)?

-Emmet is well muscled and well toned, but he is not abnormally large, just well built. He is not the Hulk. Also if he has a soft, fun-loving personality, he is still not a teddy-bear _all the time_. I don't know of anyone who would describe their guy friend or brother as a teddy bear…even if they do have a free-wheeling personality. In conversation, I would call them a softy or a sweetheart. Also, he may be slightly outside the box and like to have a good time, but he is not a completely immature buffoon. He doesn't make sex jokes 24/7, he doesn't always make bets, and he isn't stupid, just occasionally dense. So stop turning Emmet into a joke.

-Edward isn't emo. So people should really stop making him act that way. Just because someone is reserved and introverted does not mean that they are completely fun deprived or depressed or depressing. He is a somewhat jaded soul, by really traumatic and somewhat unforgivable events, not a poetry-reading, all-black-wearing, coffee house patron. Also, he is allowed to be somewhat experienced in the world; he wasn't living under a rock, just not living it up.

-Bella is allowed to be multi-faceted too. In fact, SM made sure to point out how multi-faceted she was in the books. She did that by giving her some tastes and interests and personality traits that were slightly outside the norm, like classic literature and not necessarily current music choices. However, that doesn't mean that she is physically incapable of liking anything else. Also, she is not that self-deprecating. She doesn't view herself as a hot commodity physically or emotionally, but she isn't a prude or unable to take a complement. Most of her feelings towards herself, in my opinion, are probably residual from basically having to raise herself because her mother was never really focused on her. I think this was selfish of her mother, and it left scarring effects on her daughter. Also, I think Bella blames herself for her parents divorce. Both of those things combined I think prevent her from feeling like anyone could care about her or think highly of her in any way. But that doesn't mean that she is completely unable to accept things when they come to her.

-Rosalie is not a cold hearted bitch. She has reasons for being the way she is and I think giving her that depth makes her a very real, very personable, relatable character; and I think people should respect that.

The key to a believable story, with believable characters is MAKING THEM REAL!!!

2. Bella can read another book besides Wuthering Heights. In fact, I hope she does, because even though I, personally, am a fan of the book (before Twilight was written…claiming you _love_ the book afterwards, having only read the cliff notes version and knowing the general concept, without reading the whole thing and giving Bronte her due, doesn't count), I would hate to think that her entire world view and basis of reality through literature and enjoyment came from _one _author who only wrote _one _book.

3. Edward and Bella can do something else besides listen to that one damn song together. They are bound to have something else in common besides that one Debussy song, because if they don't, then maybe they shouldn't be together.

4. I know what it's like to trip over your own feet; but Bella is not completely incapacitated every time she takes a step. She's clumsy, not drunk, not retarded, clumsy. Which means, she can walk, talk, sit, stand, carry stuff, and do things without tripping, falling, dropping things, breaking things or herself. Also, do you fall to the ground every time you trip over your feet? No, do you know why? It's called balance, even if yours is off, your body still retains the ability to right itself if it is falling over.

5. I understand the concept of love at first sight…but normal people don't fall in love after 1 day…or even a couple of weeks. You have to really know someone before you can love them; that's just how it works.

6. Stop saying "I suck at summaries." Don't suck. If you're taking the time to write a summary, take the time to write a good one. If you think your work is worth being read, your summary should reflect that.

7. Stop putting your personal life in your author's notes. If it relates to the story specifically, ie. I have finals, a job, AP exams, a fatal illness, therefore I won't be updating for a couple of weeks// or any shout outs to betas or people who helped you write your story or gave you a good review…that's all fine. But telling all of your readers how you just got a boyfriend and he plays varsity ping-pong and your going to Fridays for your 3 day anniversary…nobody wants to hear it. (Or even if your brother/sister/best friend/house cleaner got hit by a car and you don't think they're going to make it…some things aren't anyone else's business and you shouldn't be spouting your personal hardship/ stress/ loss to others, because I can't think of any other reason why random people you don't know should know about this, other than you are trying to get sympathy, which is wrong and selfish of you if they (whoever they are) aren't going to make it.) It's very unprofessional and also it takes away from anything important (to your readers, not to you) that you have to say in your author's note.

8. Normal people don't even know what the hell Freesia is, let alone what it smells like or would make the connection if they did smell something that was similar. Edward has been around for a while and has a huge wealth of knowledge, so it is plausible that he can correctly identify and be familiar with the scent. So please people, stop making EVERYONE know and recognize a plant that I know every single one of you probably haven't ever seen or smelled in your life. (Exception: if you are writing a continuation of the current Twilight story, or Edward is still a vampire, but even then, he wouldn't say it all the time.) These are your own stories, if you think Bella or Edward should smell a certain way, and you are not writing it as if Edward is a 100whatever year old vampire that thinks she smells this way, then don't make the connection, because the average person hasn't even heard of it (SM being the exception).

9. I understand the emotional power of kissing someone and being so overwhelmed that it takes your breath away. But I think SM (and I don't think this was intentional) was a little off with this. When you kiss someone…you _can _breathe! Its called breathing through your nose (and sometimes your mouth, which is really sexy if done correctly). People can make out for hours without passing out or stopping. So every time you have Bella and Edward kiss, she doesn't have to be holding her breath like she is going scuba diving without the oxygen…she can breathe; we don't always have to make her lightheaded from lack of oxygen to the brain. I know the expression "coming up for air" is applied to people making out, but its not literal.

10. Stop saying things like "Bella Barbie" and "Cinderbella"; it was funny and cute the first time someone thought of it…but now its just annoying.

11. "Esme's Favorite" is NOT THE NAME OF THE SONG!!! It is a song that Edward composed that is a favorite of Esme's. Does "Esme's Favorite" sound somewhat strange to anyone else?

12. If you are going to use the same story of how Bella and her mom lived with her father in Forks until they got divorced and she moved to Phoenix with her mom, until she got remarried…blah, blah, blah, blah blah! We've heard it! If you are going to recite the Gettysburg Address of preface information at the beginning of the story, make sure its one we haven't heard before (AND ITS RELEVENT, because if it don't matter, don't put it)…because if you are an avid ff reader like myself, the 120th time you hear a story that you know by heart because you're a big Twilight fan and READ the BOOK, it gets kinda old.

13. What is it with everyone making Edward into a gay prude? Seriously. Edward can notice girls without being interested, can be interested without acting on it, and can act on feelings for girls without it going anywhere seriously romantically. Just because Edward hasn't found that "deep serious connection" with a special someone does not mean that he is a prude or that he never shows any interest in connecting with people to the point where people think he's gay. In the books, he lived through a very traumatic event of watching everyone die to the Spanish influenza, then he was turned into a vampire, then he killed people and then he felt bad about it…so he's allowed to become a little reclusive and antisocial. But if you are writing a AH story or something of the like, then he shouldn't be totally inexperience or completely retarded in the romance world. Also, I know a lot, if not most, of the ff writers are women, (as am I), but, men don't look for that special someone when they are 17-22. They don't worry about the fact that they can't click on an emotional level with the "girls around here." Because if we are being honest with ourselves, guys this age are only interested in one thing…that doesn't make them bad people (it's only because it's how they're built and when their sexual peak is). And if you are a guy who is reading this, don't deny it, because we'd all know you're lying.

14. *****USE CORRECT GRAMMAR!!!!!!***** Spell things correctly, use correct punctuation, make sure your sentence structure is correct, capitalize proper nouns, don't capitalize things that shouldn't be capitalized, etc. I know that everyone has had at least one too many English courses where they had to learn the same basic grammar shit over and over and over and over again….what amazes me, is that knowing this to be true, people still use incorrect grammar, spelling, punctuation and just plain bad sentence structure and writing technique. It really takes away from your story if all of your sentences start with lowercase letters, if your proper nouns aren't capitalized, if you don't put a comma before a quote in a sentence, etc. You are taking the time to write story that you think people should read; it is distracting to have bad grammar. Also, like my AP Lang teacher in high school said, "Elevate your language." (PS that was a correct notation). Don't just use any old word, use the right word. We are all in school or read or had some English class; you know more than you think, don't settle…also use a dictionary or a thesaurus. It helps. If you don't know correct grammar, there are a million websites for it. (USE SEMI-COLONS PEOPLE, they exist for a reason!). It's awful for the reader and awfully embarrassing for the writer when there is poor grammar in your story. Proofread people, that's what it's there for; also get someone to look over your story for you…it helps.

-OH MY GOD!! And please for all that is holy or sacred in the world…do not use short hand or text speak. It is not , it's at.. It is not 2, it is two. It is not plz and ur or idk, it is please, and your and I don't know. Professional editors would keel over and die if they received something like this. Don't kill off your readers.

-If you are saying too as in also, IT HAS TWO O's. If you are saying you are, it's YOU'RE with the APOSTROPHE. If you are saying it is, it is IT'S, with an APOSTROPHE. They are is THEY'RE, you guessed it, with an APOSTROPHE. Etc. These are things that people should know and do. Don't cut corners, because it cuts away from the integrity of your work.

15. Normal people don't introduce themselves by their whole first name if they want to be called something different. If she wants to be called Bella, and everyone knows her as Bella, she is going to introduce herself as Bella. Not as "Isabella, but I prefer to be called Bella." People, after a while, will guess or ask or find out what her full name is, but she won't introduce herself as such. It just is that way.

PLEASE GIVE ME YOUR FEEDBACK!!! I want to know what people think of this list, if you agree, if you think I'm full of shit, etc. Just, be nice, please. Even if you don't agree with what I'm saying, don't be mean. Also feel free to send me a message telling me to add something. Maybe if this list gets enough support, people will stop doing these things and the quality of writing of the collective will improve….here's hoping.

-I'll be adding more as I think of them.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you to everyone who is showing support for my list. Let's nip this bad writing in the butt.

Shout out to Scream It Loud. Thanks for the review, and suggestions. I had completely forgotten this one….

16. Don't pair characters with strange combinations if you aren't going to take it seriously. If you want to write a story where Edward and Jasper get together, write it because you really believe they should be, not because you are turning it into a joke or because you want to be funny or whatever. There is nothing wrong with creative license, but SM created these characters a certain way and paired them with certain people for a reason. If you want to mess with her pairings, make sure it is for a good reason. Not because you want to have them make out during a game of truth or dare.

**Tangent Alert**

-That is another thing…Again, I believe in creative license and freedom of expression and all that, but for the love of God, don't write shit that you expect us to read because you think its funny. Most of the time, truth or dare stories, meaningless "comedy" stories, those stories that say things like… "what happens after one night of drinking? Too much sex, Jasper making out with Carlisle, Emmett in a chicken suite and Bella standing on her head" or whatever; (you all know what I'm talking about) are just down right awful. Those stories are usually ridiculous and no one wants to read them. They are not honest products of hard work that you put out there to get genuine feedback on the quality and integrity of your writing. They are usually shit. If you want to write these stories for your own enjoyment (which is the defense a lot of these writers use when they get negative feedback) so you and your friends can get a good laugh out of your sense of humor that's fine (Just don't put it on ff). But many writers put this up on this site and in my opinion it detracts from the integrity of the site. And many people use this site honestly, to get feedback on their writing style because they are planning on publishing work for real. So, in conclusion, don't be stupid. Have some dignity in your writing.

**Disclaimer: Just my opinion**


	3. Chapter 3

17. Stop having everyone say, "you don't see yourself clearly." Even if someone were to say this, this way….not every single person would say it and not everyone would say it this way. Be original people with your lines. Repeating SM lines every chance you get for every person for every occasion, gets really old really fast. Be your own writer…also, say things that people would actually say. Having Bella say, "I need a human moment" when she's talking about going to the bathroom in a AH story does not make sense. Having a character make a mistake or break down or do something that happens to everyone and having them say that they were only being human is normal…calling yourself human in comparison to someone who is also a human in a story where myth is not included, doesn't make sense.

18. Don't write whole songs in your story line after line after line. If you want the reader to imagine a song in the background or you have a character singing a song, make reference to it. Don't write the whole damn thing. Especially if you wrote it or if you don't say what song it is or who it's by, because then the reader is just left with a shit load of text that is not relevant and that the reader is not interested in. Even better, leave links to these songs on your profile so the reader can listen to it during the chapter. I know some do this, and it is a fabulous idea, don't you think?

19. AHHH!!!! Loose: (looss), adj; **not firmly attached: **not firmly fastened or fixed in place

Lose: (looz), v; **to have something taken away: **to cease to possess or have something such as a job or home

Ex: My shoe came **loose **and fell off. Vs. I hate to **lose **at sports.

If you get confused, use a dictionary.

20. The past tense of a verb that sounds like it turns into a "LT" doesn't necessarily mean it turns into an "LT"

The past tense of deal is dealt, the past tense of feel is felt, but the past tense of smell is NOT smelt. The past tense of smell is smelled. Smelt: v; **to** **produce metal: **to melt ore in order to get metal from it, or produce metal in this way. (this is why spell check won't help you)

You would be amazed at the number of people who make this mistake. Again, use a dictionary.

21. Extension of 20.

My professor sent us this poem to teach us about proof reading.

OWED TO THE SPELL CHECKER

I have a spelling checker

It came with my PC

It plane lee marks four my revue

Miss steaks aye can knot sea.

…Eye ran this poem threw it,

Your sure reel glad two no.

Its vary polished in it's weigh

My checker tolled me sew.

…A checker is a bless sing.

It freeze yew lodes of thyme.

It helps me awl stiles to reed,

And aides me when aye rime.

…To rite with care is quite a feet

Of witch won should be proud.

And wee mussed dew the best wee can,

Sew flaws are knot aloud.

…And now be cause my spelling

Is checked with such grate flare,

Their are know faults with in my cite;

Of non eye am a wear.

…Each frays come posed up on my screen

Eye trussed to be a joule.

The checker poured o'er every word

To check sum spelling rule.

…That's why aye break in two averse

My righting wants too pleas.

Sow now ewe sea why aye dew prays

Such soft wear for pea seas!

Author unknown.

Do you get my point?…..

Disclaimer: Still just my opinions.

PS. Thank you to all of the reviewers who have been catching MY grammar and spelling mistakes. THIS IS WHY YOU NEED SOMEONE ELSE TO PROOFREAD YOUR WORK!!! It doesn't matter how many times you read something. If you know what it's supposed to say, you tend you miss mistakes, thinking that you are actually reading what you meant to write. However, having someone else read your work, or even going away and coming back later to read it yourself when your mind is fresh is a good idea.

…some of my mistakes make me feel silly…haha.


	4. Chapter 4

22. If you are going to write a fanfic from an alternate point of view than the original; or even if you are going to rewrite a chapter of your own creation from another character's point of view…DO NOT JUST COPY AND PASTE AND CHANGE THE HE'S AND SHE'S. If you are taking the time to create an alternate perspective that you feel is important to your story, do not say EXACTLY the same thing and add an occasional sentence here and there. People already read the first one. They don't want to read it again unless it has a purpose. And even then, they don't want to read the same exact version that they just read.*

23. If you are doing a crossover between two different stories, DO NOT JUST REWRITE THE SAME EXACT STORY OF ONE OF THEM AND ADD IN THE OTHER'S CHARACTER NAMES. Ex. I was scouting fanfics and I came across a Twilight X Another Cinderella Story one. I read the first couple of paragraphs only to realize that it was an exact reproduction of the movie ACS's events, characters (occasional change in names) and dialogue. **THAT'S PLAGIARISM!!!!!!!!** Even thought she acknowledged that she was doing a crossover, she was still passing the story off as her own. Writing the same exact ideas but changing a few words is still PLAGIARISM! Be careful. **PLAGIARISM IS A CRIME!**

**(*This is also why you can't write a Twilight fanfic from Edward's point of view and just change the he's and she's.)**

**24. Bella doesn't have to blush at EVERYTHING! Blushing is a reflex from being embarrassed, and not EVERYTHING should embarrass her. It just doesn't make sense. Some people blush easier than others, but that still doesn't mean that she does it all the time.**


End file.
